Investigation initiated regarding an accident that took place on 13 January 2020 at Helsinki Airport

The Safety Investigation Authority, Finland has initiated an investigation under Section 2 of the Safety Investigation Act (525/2011) into an accident that occurred at the Helsinki-Vantaa Airport on 13 January 2020. A member of the cabin crew fell off the rear door of an Airbus A320 aircraft and was injured.

Air Traffic Controller (ret.) Lars Levo is appointed as the head of investigation team and Commercial Pilot (ret.) Heikki Kasurinen and Safety Investigator Juho Posio are appointed as its members. Chief Safety Investigator of aviation accidents Janne Kotiranta will serve as the Investigator-in-Charge.

After the flight, the aircraft was parked in the outer row of the apron. The passengers had safely exited the aircraft using the boarding steps and entered the bus. The staircase vehicle had backed up slightly away from the aircraft but was still very close to it. The rear door was closed after the passengers had exited and was soon reopened after closing. The crew member opening the door fell through the gap between the boarding steps and the aircraft to the ground and was injured, says Investigator-in-charge Janne Kotiranta.

We have initiated an investigation into the accident. Our investigation team continues to collect information and determine the flow of events and causes of the occurrence. We also investigate the rescue actions taken. The goal of the investigation is to identify the recommendations with which corresponding accidents can be avoided, says Professor Veli-Pekka Nurmi, Director of Safety Investigation Authority, Finland.

The investigation will be completed in approximately 6 months, Nurmi adds.

Further information:

Investigator-in-charge Janne Kotiranta, tel. +358 2951 50703

Veli-Pekka Nurmi, Director, professor tel. +358 2951 50701